Based in the beautiful Bay of Islands, master craftsman boat builder Craig McInnes of CMC Design used his 30 years experience to follow his lifetime ambition of furniture design. He began with his adult furniture range – exquisite, contemporary and featuring nautical ‘bones’.
When his daughter Jesse came along, he began to search for quality handmade children’s furniture and realised there wasn’t a lot available. In response to this he developed his Hebe range – quality, unique wooden kids’ furniture that is made to last for generations.
Photograph by Jenna Young Photography
What do you make?
Unique and durable wooden children’s furniture and building blocks. Stylish upmarket adult furniture. I also do any custom creations.
How did you get into your craft?
From childhood I was always sketching new and interesting (well, I thought so) furniture designs. With 30 year boat building experience behind me I decided to follow my dream and launched my furniture ranges.
Do you have formal training or qualifications in your craft?
I’m a qualified boat builder
.
What are your favourite materials, tools and processes?
I love working with natural materials. I especially love laminating wood into cool and unique forms. One of my hobbies is collecting antique hand tools like planes etc.
What inspires you?
The IRD! The curiosity of what my next creation will be and the Kiwi ‘can do anything’ attitude.
Is there a philosophy behind your work?
I like to make REAL things with my hands that inspire and last. Furniture is my art where I have a freedom to create. I want my furniture to have a standout identity and style, that will stand the test of time.
Photographs by Jenna Young Photography
Five words that describe your mind:
Virgo, virgo, virgo, virgo, virgo. (I don’t follow star signs but have all the virgo traits – so my wife tells me!)
Describe your workspace:
Busy and varied (and dusty!). We are excited to be moving to a new workshop in March just 2 doors down from where we currently are.
Your favourite response from a customer:
Our most recent customer gave us the following feedback: “We are extremely happy with the furniture! Absolutely love, love, love it!”
Product photographs by Jenna Young Photography
What are you listening to? Ella Fitzgerald
Recommend an album: Billy Idol – Shooting Stars
Your favourite childhood book? Harry Potter didn’t exist so Janet & John .
What are you reading now? The Saturday Herald
Favourite quotes?
“Let’s blow this popsicle stand” and “Don’t panic it’s organic”.
Do you have any pets?
Work colleague and off-cut chewer Chinka the dog – and the occasional office snail.
What was the last handmade item you bought?
A New Zealand-made wooden car for my two year old daughter and a pair of Dual jeans – also New Zealand made. I always buy New Zealand made!
CMC Design are giving away a fabulous Hebe playbox worth $380! This ingenius box table has a hinged table top and a gas-lever box-top (no slammed fingers to worry about!) making it the ultimate toddler’s playbox. To be in to win, leave a comment below and we’ll draw the winner on Friday 15 March. The draw is open to New Zealand residents only.
Beautiful pieces! LOVE your work 🙂
What a stunning giveaway.. would LOVE it for my daughter!
Thank you for being so careful in your design and giving much thought to what children will enjoy to play with. Something that is just their size, something that feels nice to touch and something that will last a long, long time.
Amazing work and stylish and functional design. Do you do outdoor kids table? You should add to your collection!
Beautiful!
Really beautiful, functional and practical…
A beautiful piece my little boy would love this!
Love love love, the blocks are amazing – endless play possibilities, the toy box/desk/seat is brilliant and very functional.
What a fantastic piece for a very lucky child!
so good to see some quality kid’s furniture, and NZ made as well. Keeping it local! I lam in love with it all. Keep up the great work
Beautiful craftsmanship. My parents still have a set of little wooden
tables & chairs from when I was a child.
These pieces are the type you keep until your children have children.
WOW…what a gorgeous piece, and so clever
I work in a Steiner kindergarten in Dunedin, and that wee set would be just perfect for the children. Beautiful and thoughtfully made -an ideal combination.
Very unique, thoughtful and stylish. Would go well in any house.
Thats stunning! And such a clever idea. I love it and Im sure my kids will too!
Fabulous- my grand daughter would love it!
Love it!
What beautiful work; unique, creative, practical and fun. I love the natural materials used. Love the pictures of the family also 🙂
Wicked!! I love this! Especially as I’m wandering around the house picking up the trail of toys my three little ones have left behind 🙂
This is lovely, we live in such a small apartment a space saving play unit like this would be perfect for our little man who turns 3 on tuesday!!!
What a wonderful idea, and such beautiful craftsmanship – Kiwi Ingenuity is alive and well!
Such beautiful items! Its so hard to find well made and still beautiful kids furniture
What beautiful furniture – your virgo nature definitely shows through in the high standard of your work, believer or not! I would absolutely love to win the toy box for my little boy who is turning 1 this month. Fingers crossed.
Such beautiful furniture!
Hebe – love it. very practical and would fit anywhere
Wow! You sure have talent and creativity. I love your furniture. So practical as well as stylish! Awesome!!
Love your work! I’m only a few weeks away from having my first child and your creations are a real find! So good to see crafts people making things to last.
I’m also married to a Virgo!!!
Keep up the good work.
What a beautifully crafted, well thought out Toy Box. It would be easily filled and often used in our house when neices / nephews and grandchildren come to stay with us and play with the many toys that need a home.
this just looks fabulous. Would love to win it for my granddaughter who is 17 months old. NZ made with great craftmanship
Everything is so stylish and you can tell hes particular! Congrats to whoever wins, im sure it will be a treasure to be passed down and down and down 🙂
this just looks fabulous. Would love to win it for my granddaughter who is 17 months old. NZ made with great craftmanship.
What exquisite craftsmanship and creations you have produced – well done! Fantastic to see sustainable and beautiful alternatives to the avalanche of robotic mass produced dominating the market
PS Your lounger is a stunner too!
Love this! All natural, practical, and yay no plastic!! Well done.
Oh – such lovely furniture! I think it is on our kindergarten’s wish-list to replace the 1970’s broken and bright chairs and tables with Hebe. So organic and inspiring.
What inspires you?
The IRD!
+++++
Me too! That did make me laugh but I also understand that designers often need motivation and it can come from unexpected quarters.
Beaut work, love it!
SO refreshing to see furniture for children looking subtly stylish… neat angles, practical and down to earth. No fuss, yet a talking point in any room. We learn so much about ourselves and extending the limits of our own creativity when little ones come into our lives (helping us view the world in new ways). Well done Craig – and go NZ handmade!
beatiful, useful furniture. I wish I could buy all the pieces from this seller.
Absolutely stunning! What a fantastic design that toy box is, multi use and I’m sure it would last to be handed down again and again.
Awesome furniture love the design of the toy box with little fingers in mind
Amazing design. A truly gifted craftsmanship
Makes me smile
That’s the most gorgeous furniture I’ve ever seen! I think if I won the toy box I’d have to buy a whole set of furniture to match so it wouldn’t make the stuff we have look shabby and horrible. The sun lounger looks so relaxing!
Love the Hebe playbox, what a fantastic idea!!
What a beautiful range of furniture, would love some for my wee boy but love the adults stuff too
Fabulous furniture! Love the toy box-brilliant design-my kids would love it too!
This is just great – love the two toned timber, safety features and adaptible design!
I have always been a huge supporter of hand crafted timber products – from the humble building block to tables and chairs – I simply adore the tactile warmth of timber.
Your products are beautiful, even more so from reading that you obvioulsy live your design philosphy – well done on creating lasting products that both children and grown ups love, and for supporting NZ made!
utterly beautiful, warm, classic, smooth, earthy, divine. yum
Beautiful, classic yet contemporary and very practical – love your work
What a wonderful idea! Save space too! Some of your items look 50s inspired to me. My best friends little boy has just turned one. He would be so excited to get such a grown up present!
Very inspiring!! Everything is so well thought out, you can tell that you play with kids a lot 🙂 I can just see my son buidling those blocks as high as he can… and then trying to climb them! Gorgeous work.